State Department: No decision on Jonathan Pollard

Administration officials moved quickly Thursday to shoot down reports that a deal had been struck to keep open negotiations over a framework for Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that would include releasing the former Navy intelligence officer and convicted spy from a North Carolina prison.

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“Nothing has changed. No decision has been made about Jonathan Pollard,” said State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki.

Special envoy Martin Indyk, who remained in the region meeting with Israeli and Palestinian officials after a frustrated Secretary of State John Kerry left last week, ended his talks Thursday without a deal.

“There is no breakthrough. All of the current rumors that a deal has been reached are false,” a senior administration official said.

American officials announced they were re-evaluating American involvement in the peace process after Kerry announced “reality-check time” and flew back to Washington late last week.

Israel has sought Pollard’s release for decades, and getting him out has been a priority of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His release was raised last week as a possibility for facilitating the release of a group of prisoners Palestinians had sought.

Psaki declined to confirm that Pollard was part of the current discussions, saying only that “there are a range of topics” in conversation.

She announced that Indyk will return to Washington for more briefings with Kerry and the national security team, as well as to celebrate Passover, which begins Monday night. She said she expects Indyk will return again to Israel next week.

But Psaki said hope about the process remains alive in Foggy Bottom.

“The gaps are narrowing,” she said, but dubbed any speculation about an agreement “premature.”